UPSC Mains 2026 GS4 Q3c: model answer
Shakespeare in Henry IV says, “The arms are fair when the intent of bearing them is just”. What ethical implications does this have in governance?
What the question wants
Interpret the quote (legitimacy of power depends on purpose) and draw implications for use of force and authority in governance, including limits (means also matter).
How to structure it
Intro: meaning. Body: implications; caution about means. Conclusion.
- 1Implications
- 2Caution about means
Model answer
The line says that force or power is legitimate only when the purpose behind it is just. In governance, 'arms' include the State's coercive and administrative powers.
Implications
- Purpose of power: police action, demolitions or detentions are justified only if they serve justice and public good, not revenge or political gain.
- Just war and security: India's doctrine of no-first-use and restraint in military operations rests on a just intent of self-defence.
- Discretion: an officer must ask 'why am I using this power?' before 'can I use it?'.
- Public trust: people accept State force when they believe its intent is fair.
A caution: intent alone is not enough. Gandhi insisted that means and ends are inseparable. A just aim pursued by unjust means, such as custodial torture to solve a crime, corrupts the aim itself. Law also judges acts, not only motives.
So the quote sets a first test for using power: a just purpose. Governance must add the second: just and proportionate means.
Keywords, cases and data to drop in
legitimacy just intent means and ends proportionality discretion
Where most answers lose marks
- Only paraphrasing the quote
- Not mentioning means
Fresh examples from current affairs
Supreme Court: no prior approval under Section 17A needed to probe a bribe demand
In a judgment of 16 October 2026, a Supreme Court Bench of Justices S.V.N. Bhatti and N.V. Anjaria held that investigating a bribe demand by a public servant does not need prior approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Asking for a bribe, the court said, is not part of discharging official duties.
UPSC angle: Prelims: Sections 7, 7A, 17A and 19 of the PC Act. · Mains GS-II/GS-IV: honest officers versus accountability.
19 Oct 2026Learn the concept
Question text as printed in the official UPSC question paper: https://www.upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/QP-CSM-26-010926-GENERAL-STUDIES-PAPER-IV.pdf The model answer is original Battle IAS work; use it to learn structure, not to memorise.